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Australian business confidence declines in December quarter: survey

Xinhua, February 4, 2015 Adjust font size:

Business confidence in Australia continued to fall in the December quarter 2014, according to National Australia Bank's (NAB) latest quarterly business survey released on Wednesday.

The NAB said that the business confidence index dropped 4 points, to 2, in the three months to the end of December, from 6 points for both preceding quarters.

Sentiment and business conditions across both states and industries are generally consistent with a "patchwork" economy, the bank said.

However the NAB said that services and interest rate sensitive sectors such as construction are outperforming. "Construction has been supported by strong investor demand, particularly in medium density housing, driven by low interest rates and foreign buyers," NAB said.

NAB said that the fall in business confidence was not surprising given the more subdued near-term outlook for the economy.

"Large declines in commodity prices are weighing on incomes, and could further erode already soft business and consumer confidence," NAB said. Endi